O.P. Garg, J. - (1.) There is a Jawahar Lal Nehru Memorial Society, Maharajganj, which is a society registered under the Societies Registration Act under the aegis of which two Post Graduate Colleges, viz., Jawahar Lal Nehru Smarak Post Graduate College, Maharajganj (for short 'J.L.N. College'), and Lal Bahadur Shastri Smarak Degree College. Anand Nagar, Maharajganj (for short 'L.B.S. College') are being run. Both these institutions have separate bye-laws for constitution of Committee of management their governance and management. These institutions are affiliated to Gorakhpur University and are governed by the provisions of U. P. State Universities Act, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act of 1973') and the first Statute of the University.
(2.) The short and die-hard question raised in this writ petition is whether the term of the Committee of Management of L.B.S. College is for a period of three years or only one year. This controversy has been raised in the wake of following facts : The last elections to constitute the Committee of Management of L.B.S. College were held on 21.7.1996 and Dr. Balram Bhatt--Petitioner No. 2 is alleged to have been elected as its President/Manager. The relevant papers with regard to the said elections were submitted to the Vice-chancellor, Gorakhpur University for grant of recognition under the provisions of Section 2 (13) of the Act of 1973. who accorded recognition which fact was communicated to the petitioners by letter dated 10/12.9.1996. Annexure-2 to the writ petition. In the said letter, it was clearly mentioned that the term of the Committee of Management of which" Dr. Balram Bhatt--Petitioner No. 2 is the President/Manager shall be three years. Accordingly, the petitioners' Committee of Management continued to manage the affairs of L.B.S. College. Surprisingly a letter dated 9.9.1998, Annexure-4 to the writ petition was sent by the Registrar of the University to the petitioners intimating them that on scrutiny of the papers, it was found that in view of the decision dated 23.11.1988 passed by this Court in Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 843 of 1988, the term of the Committee of Management of L.B.S. College is only one year, and consequently tenure of the Committee of Management elected on 21.7.1996 has already come to an end. The grievance of the petitioners is that the aforesaid impugned order dated 9.9.1998 has the effect of illegally curtailing the period of term of the Committee of Management from 3 years to one year though according to the provisions made in clause 8 y the term of the Committee of Management is 3 years and the committee elected on 21.7.1996 has to function up to 20.7.1999. It is alleged that Sri Ramesh Chandra Misra, the present Vice-Chancellor of the Gorakhpur University is a person, who is in the fold of Amarnath Misra and Narsingh Narain Pandey, rival parties with whom long drawn litigation with petitioner No. 2 is going on and at their behest, the Vice-Chancellor has passed the impugned illegal order. The background in which certain observations with regard to the term of one year of the Committee of Management came to be made in the order dated 23.11.1988 passed in Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 843 of 1988 have been narrated and the case of the petitioners is that it was on account of misconception of facts that it was observed in the decision of the aforesaid writ petition that the parties have admitted that the term of the Committee of Management of both the colleges was one year.
(3.) The petitioners have heavily relied upon the admission made by Amarnath Mishra, the contesting respondent in the earlier cases that the term of the Committee of Management of L.B.S. College is 3 years. Accordingly, by means of this writ petition, under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, it is prayed that the impugned order dated 9.9.1998. Annexure-4 to the writ petition. Issued by Gorakhpur University be quashed and the respondents be restrained from taking any action, whatsoever, on the basis of the said order or to interfere, in any manner, in the functioning of the petitioners to manage the affairs of L.B.S. College.;